Second Battle of the Marne

The Second Battle of the Marne (15 July-6 August 1918) was a major battle of World War I, the last major German offensive of the war. A total of 52 (c. 520,000-1,560,000 troops) German divisions, 609 heavy guns, and 1,047 field batteries under Erich Ludendorff launched a major offensive towards the French capital of Paris, facing a total of 58 Allied divisions (c. 580,000-1,740,000 troops), 408 heavy guns, 360 field batteries, and 346 tanks under Ferdinand Foch. The Germans were able to make good progress at first, but a massive Allied counterattack, which employed the use of tanks, shattered the German right flank and forced the German army to withdraw. The Second Battle of the Marne, like the first battle back in August 1914, saw the Germans fail in their attempts to cross the Marne River and take Paris, and the German defeat allowed for the allies to launch the relentless Hundred Days Offensive.